BookLikes….A site for Readers and Authors.

So, instead of my usual “coming next week” post today I thought I would talk a little bit about a new site for Readers and Authors alike that I recently joined..

Now I was persuaded to join when, due to the new reviewing policy at Goodreads, a lot of the reviewers and friends that I was following jumped ship to find a new home. I think enough has been said on the subject – I myself will continue to use Goodreads as I always have unless it becomes significantly more commercial (which considering recent events is not beyond the realms of possibility as of course Amazon now own the site) but I was also very interested in trying to find a site that is less about the selling and more about the reading. So far Booklikes seems to fulfill this need…

I have to say I am enjoying it very much. As it is in the early stages of development, there are a few teething issues but that will very much change as time goes on. And of course there is the element of having to learn a new “Set up” so to speak but overall so far it seems like exactly the type of site avid readers will love.

A HUGE plus about BookLikes is the professional, efficient and speedy service offered by staff when you send them a query. I have had several, being a complete technophobe, and each and every one has been answered clearly and concisely within a couple of hours of me mailing or posting on Twitter. Great eh? Whether they will be able to keep this level of service up when their membership grows is another thing – but I have a feeling that they themselves are determined to make this the best site possible for lovers of all things book related.

Another thing I love is that each member gets their own blog. Now on Goodreads only authors have certain privileges – here on BookLikes, readers and authors alike can post articles, links AND reviews to their blog where they become accessible to all. Shelves appear to work pretty much as they do on Goodreads and more features are being added all the time. I simply imported all my books and reviews from Goodreads (it did take a few days due to the HUGE traffic that they encountered but hey, they fixed that. Another example of the dedication – originally my import was due to take thousands of hours then all of a sudden….done!) I know some users are still awaiting everything to arrive, and some reformatting will be required of the reviews imported but apart from that, easy peasy.

You can follow and be followed a little like on Twitter – the “explore” feature lets you look at the biggest hits around site currently, and adding a book is fairly simple. You can add links to your homepage for your own personal blog and other sites and the share buttons are available if you want to let those on Twitter et al know what articles you have been reading. I love the clean, informal and intimate layout and have had an awful lot of fun simply clicking my way around and learning as I go…

Oh and I would like to give a huge THANK YOU also to those readers and goodreads refugees’s who have joined Booklikes, explored the options, and provided on their BookLikes Blog many simple to follow masterclasses in how to use all the features and customise your blog, even when you need to use code to do so. I have no idea how to code ANYTHING so that has been tremendously helpful (although I still have not been brave enough to actually try more of the technically minded ways of changing things!). The REAL sense of community here is stunning.

The “wishlist” post on Booklikes is filling up fast with many suggestions to the crew on how to make the site better – each and every one of which is being taken seriously and implemented if possible. Groups are coming soon, as are many other things that all sound terrific! So yes. If it remains like this then I shall indeed be happy to call it home.

A quick note with reference to Goodreads again and THAT policy. Unlike the staff at Goodreads, the Booklikes crew have been more than happy to answer queries on what is and is not acceptable on their site, and their policy is clear and concise. Abuse and Threats are not tolerated, as is absolutely correct, but pretty much anything else goes (within reason of course but if you are unsure you can ask and, hey, actually GET an answer) so I think this is going to be a fun and involving site to play around with.

2 Responses to BookLikes….A site for Readers and Authors.

This sounds like a triffic site, Liz! I have saved the link and am going to take a look soon, then I will have another site that I need to keep up with…. oh, well!!!! I know just what you mean about Goodreads – I used to love it, but stupidly I linked it to Twitter and now there is no personal contact with people who just like reading, just endless auto friend requests from Twitter followers. I used to chat a bit with the people I ‘met’ on there, but now all my messages are, are spam from people trying to sell me their book.